Monday, 15 May 2017

Canna-Maple Candy

It’s Spring in Eastern Ontario, the season where Maple gives liquid love to mankind. Speaking of giving, a very generous friend gave my Daddy a jug of this golden nectar from trees around my home town. My Daddy shared some with me and I knew I had to make candy. The only decision was: plain or medicated? Medicated it is.

I believe we’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg when it comes to how many ways we can use the Cannabis plant. One of the best ways for patients who have little to no appetite is in the form of candies and toffees. The reason for this is simple; this method takes advantage of the multitude of tiny blood vessels under the tongue that lead right into the bloodstream. When we suck on candy or toffee, the cannabinoids can linger in the mouth and under the tongue for longer thus giving more time for mega absorption directly into your circulating blood. Another benefit of sublingual administration is that it protects the precious compounds from coming into contact with other substances like digestive enzymes and stomach acid that can degrade them.

When I write about my creations, I in no way believe it is the one and only way. But I like to be versatile so I decided to decarb my bud differently this time. Normally it goes into the oven but this time it went into my double boiler for 40 minutes on burner heat 4 to 5 with foil covering the top. I stirred occasionally to ensure even heating. We want all of those cannabinoids to vibrate and knock those acids off so they’ll fit into our cannabinoid receptors.

Next I simply took 2 cups of maple syrup and added that right to the decarbed bud in my double boiler. Stirring occasionally, I let that simmer on 4 or 5 for approximately 1 hour.

For me, the double boiler is a safety measure as I find it almost impossible to get liquids up higher than 215*F. When it comes to infusing cannabinoids into a solvent like Maple syrup, it’s more about time than temperature.

Next, strain and transfer into another saucepan that will allow us to ramp up the heat to candy-town temps!Once your canna-syrup reaches 240* to 250*F, pull it off the burner and let it cool approximately 10 minutes to about 175*F and start stirring. I wanted this to be smooth and last a while in the mouth, so I only stirred it for 2-3 minutes and then poured that onto parchment paper. Once hard, a smash to break up and voila!

In waste-not-want-not fashion, I also kept the syrup-soaked bud to be ingested over time. No cannabinoid left behind in my kitchen!

This canna-maple candy has been wonderful in the mornings when I’m not ready to vape or smoke. For the past year or so I’ve suffered from fairly extreme anxiety in the mornings before work. Cannabidiol is an anxiolytic and calms my nerves without sedation. The candies are wonderful with my morning coffee since the maple is still strong with only a hint of the herby flavour coming through at the end. So if you’re looking for a new way to ingest your Cannabis, try making some medicated maple candy!